Distressing trend..

[hawkeyeps]

I do hope more stores start carrying the Valiant TPB's. as mentioned earlier that's a huge chunk of business. TONS of trade waiters out there. I think they are doing a great job getting attention on the internet. The Comixology free #1's seems to have worked ok.

Hey btw...the posters. Never seen one what has come out so far?

I would love it if VEI would put out some posters for sale, or wardrobe. I know the clothing items are probably too big budget to make a profit at this point, but posters can't be that bad. Although I don't have much in the way of room where I could put up a poster, I'd probably still buy one.

They have had some t-shirts for sale at the cons they go to.

Which is just wonderful for those that are lucky enough to be able to go to a Con. If they would open a portal on their website to sell the t-shirts to anyone, they could make some more money I'm guessing.

I think that's a great idea, not only would it be another source of revenue it would also serve as advertising with the "walking billboard" effect.

Make money to advertise how can you loose on that?

I'm pretty sure they have this in the works but they need to get moving on it, it shouldn't be that hard. No harder than printing up a batch of shirts for sale at cons only, I would imagine the revenue they would generate from shirt sales at a con wouldn't even cover con fees.

So their intent is to provide a special promotion item not necesariliy generate any significant revenue. If they already have products such as Valiant/Bloodshot shirts they should make them available to all who want them through their website, I think they're being a little to "precious" with these products and "nanny boo boo" won't help pay the Landlord at the end of the day.

[Phoenix8008]

Exactly. Stop making it a 'special' Con-goers only item. Let the rest of us contribute if we can. Basic shirts would be awesome and once they can do that, how much would some of us actually pay for Harbinger school jackets!? Or Armstrong shoulder bags? Or other stuff? I'm sure starting a whole clothing line isn't their focus. It'd be fun, but I don't want it to detract from them making the comics. But yes, if they are already making these basic tshirts for at the Cons, I see no reason they couldn't offer them on their website. Other than maybe the cost of turning the website into a working financial portal. I'm sure there is some cost there as well.

[Dr. Solar]

I see no reason they couldn't offer them on their website. Other than maybe the cost of turning the website into a working financial portal. I'm sure there is some cost there as well.

Trust me, this takes a significant effort. Plus processing, fulfillment, shipping, etc. It takes a lot of work.

[Phoenix8008]

I see no reason they couldn't offer them on their website. Other than maybe the cost of turning the website into a working financial portal. I'm sure there is some cost there as well.

Trust me, this takes a significant effort. Plus processing, fulfillment, shipping, etc. It takes a lot of work.

Fine. You win.

I'll try to be patient and see if they put out apperal for the public within a few years or something.

(No real hard feelings Doc. I'm just impatient. )

[Ramses818]

Ok guys good stuff so far... I did notice that t-shirts are a idea. Are there any others? Just so nobody gets the wrong idea I am a huge Valiant fan. I want this company to not just survive but to thrive! I buy Valiants at many stores, I talk it up all the time (that's how I met Dr. Mirage lol) I go to the con's when I can. My favorite title is Rai, I buy everything I can of that character. Now that being said how can we help change the perception? I know people want to wait but I am a proactive kind of guy..lol. I see nothing in the way of adevrts in stores. Like I said in the old days Wizard was a good way to get word out. And yes having all the praise is nice but it does not seem to be helping, so what will? And I love all the comments so I am looking forward to so many more.

[grendeljd]

Ok guys good stuff so far... I did notice that t-shirts are a idea. Are there any others? Just so nobody gets the wrong idea I am a huge Valiant fan. I want this company to not just survive but to thrive! I buy Valiants at many stores, I talk it up all the time (that's how I met Dr. Mirage lol) I go to the con's when I can. My favorite title is Rai, I buy everything I can of that character. Now that being said how can we help change the perception? I know people want to wait but I am a proactive kind of guy..lol. I see nothing in the way of adevrts in stores. Like I said in the old days Wizard was a good way to get word out. And yes having all the praise is nice but it does not seem to be helping, so what will? And I love all the comments so I am looking forward to so many more.

Well, Carson has thrown down the gauntlet for us fellow fans to pick up (and kudo's to those who have) - the 'Valiant Freeview'; set up a give away at your LCS of any doubles you may have stashed away to people who haven't tried a Valiant book.

I'm seriously considering doing this - I don't have extra copies of any issues other than variants, but my LCS still has about a dozen copies of Shadowman #1. I might buy them up and have the shop give them to away to regular customers that they think might like it.

[xodacia81]

Ok guys good stuff so far... I did notice that t-shirts are a idea. Are there any others? Just so nobody gets the wrong idea I am a huge Valiant fan. I want this company to not just survive but to thrive! I buy Valiants at many stores, I talk it up all the time (that's how I met Dr. Mirage lol) I go to the con's when I can. My favorite title is Rai, I buy everything I can of that character. Now that being said how can we help change the perception? I know people want to wait but I am a proactive kind of guy..lol. I see nothing in the way of adevrts in stores. Like I said in the old days Wizard was a good way to get word out. And yes having all the praise is nice but it does not seem to be helping, so what will? And I love all the comments so I am looking forward to so many more.

Well, Carson has thrown down the gauntlet for us fellow fans to pick up (and kudo's to those who have) - the 'Valiant Freeview'; set up a give away at your LCS of any doubles you may have stashed away to people who haven't tried a Valiant book.

I'm seriously considering doing this - I don't have extra copies of any issues other than variants, but my LCS still has about a dozen copies of Shadowman #1. I might buy them up and have the shop give them to away to regular customers that they think might like it.

I'd do that, except the response here would be "people don't want Valiant. They only want DC or Marvel." Until that mindset changes, until owners of stores start realizing that *SQUEE* about not being able to push the same old non-selling "big 2" books when potential goldmines sit on the shelves, the industry will remain mired in the slump it is in. Of course, for some reason, the store I go to-merely for the deep discounts-is convinced that the industry is still in the midst of the bubble collapse.

I did get them to admit that they are shocked by how well Valiant has done for a new company and that they've shipped on time. As for sales, The comment last time was "even that Archer and Armstrong...never sold well the first time it was out, but we sell 80% every time it comes out."

[pixierosa]

I think Valiant has done a great job promoting via social media. The comic shops themselves are a different matter. Like others have said, it seems like many of them will emphasize the big 2. I don't understand it myself - if you're buying the product for your store, even in small quantities, it only makes sense to want to sell it. A lot of shops just don't put out the marketing. For instance, my shop gave me a whole pack of the Harbinger 0 posters. Awesome for me, not so great for public awareness.

My "city" isn't a metropolis; we have only one LCS. They order small amounts of Valiant. While they are cool about chatting with me about Valiant and are starting to remind me when new books are coming out, they don't promote within the store. They neither discourage nor encourage, which is pretty much their approach to everything in my experience. Very chill. They do seem a bit cautious about Valiant, partly because of the 90s bust. They also have expressed that they wish Valiant would embrace some of the original artists like Bob Hall, who lives in my town. I'm fairly certain that if Bob did something with Valiant, it would get promoted in my shop.

Dr. Solar is correct; shopping portals require quite a bit of planning and development, from actual design to business practices. Maybe Valiant can offer swag through some other retail sites first, to test the waters.

[Phoenix8008]

I would totally love to sponsor a Valiant Free view... if only I had a comic shop anywhere nearby and could afford to buy extras in order supply people with.

[ian_house]

I think Valiant has done a great job promoting via social media. The comic shops themselves are a different matter. Like others have said, it seems like many of them will emphasize the big 2. I don't understand it myself - if you're buying the product for your store, even in small quantities, it only makes sense to want to sell it. A lot of shops just don't put out the marketing. For instance, my shop gave me a whole pack of the Harbinger 0 posters. Awesome for me, not so great for public awareness.

My "city" isn't a metropolis; we have only one LCS. They order small amounts of Valiant. While they are cool about chatting with me about Valiant and are starting to remind me when new books are coming out, they don't promote within the store. They neither discourage nor encourage, which is pretty much their approach to everything in my experience. Very chill. They do seem a bit cautious about Valiant, partly because of the 90s bust. They also have expressed that they wish Valiant would embrace some of the original artists like Bob Hall, who lives in my town. I'm fairly certain that if Bob did something with Valiant, it would get promoted in my shop.

Dr. Solar is correct; shopping portals require quite a bit of planning and development, from actual design to business practices. Maybe Valiant can offer swag through some other retail sites first, to test the waters.

They already have eBay, a possible outlet. And are therefore partnered with Paypal, with very little effort they could sell a few things through the website. Although the website really doesn't seem like a major concern to them.

[Phantom..]

I am sure I have seen a website, where you submit the design and the shirt is printed to order and shipped - with % going to designer.

I recall a famous rapper? Using it to sell his t- shirts to lower cost and help stop bootleggers. I think anyone can use it, although a long time ago - a friend of mine tried a similar thing. Cannot recall details will try an online search latter.

Summit the design, company prints and ships, valiant gets a cut with not much work.

[Shadowman99]

I am sure I have seen a website, where you submit the design and the shirt is printed to order and shipped - with % going to designer.

Hey, I'm not sure if we're talking about the same thing here, but websites like zazzle and cafepress generally let you submit a design and ask for it to be printed, but if they fear that it infringes copyright they'll pull the item before it gets made.
On the other hand, only a month or two ago zazzle *started* allowing certain designs to be printed as long as it was okay'd by the original copyright holder to begin with. (I.E. if Metallica already agreed with Zazzle that they were happy for 'Metallica' themed designs to be printed with a cut going to them, then it'd be okay.)

It's a good idea, and I think Valiant could do something with that. I'm happy with the idea of "I design a picture of Bloodshoot bursting through the Valiant logo, pay for it and they take a cut of the money". Personally, I'd prefer that they produce their own merchandise and sell it through their own website and take a much larger cut of the cash. They'll have to do it sooner or later, so the key here might be *when* they do it. Too early and they'll waste money, too late and they'll miss money.

Like I mentioned over on the 'Forbidden Planet' thread viewtopic.php?f=1&t=38849&start=250 I wonder that seeing as Valiant still don't seem to be generating awareness out in comic book world, perhaps they need some kind of large 'event' that they advertise heavily to grab people's attention and make them listen.

I also think that getting well-reputed artists to draw for them could be a draw too. Obviously, fans of certain artists will want to see what their favourite artist is working on, and in turn, they may develop a genuine interest in the comics themselves.

Then again, I'm starting to come to the conclusion that a lot of the problem is down to the retailers. In breif, I had a conversation earlier today that went:

Me - "Why aren't there any Valiant comics on the shelf?"
Comic Shop Guy - "They sell well on reservation, but not on the shelves."

This can only possibly be because those who already know about Valiant are buying, and those that don't know the characters aren't paying attention.

Aside from Valiant's own efforts through podcasts, social media and internet exposure (Comic Vine etc), they need to get advertisement into the shops, because at the moment, Valiant isn't selling and retailers understandably don't want to buy what they can't sell.

On the other hand, I feel that retailers haven't yet realised just how healthy the Valiant lines currently are, and are missing the opportunity to promote what could potentially become 'the next big universe', and therefore, create the new major franchise that could prove to be as reliable for them in the future as Marvel and DC are.

General concensus at the moment appears to be that retailers aren't selling Valiant, and I don't believe the company can float on the cash of a handful of dedicated fans.

If Valiant can get in-store advertising right, it could just just be the thing that saves them. If they don't, it could very well be the thing that kills them.

[Phantom..]

In the uk, forbidden planet would advertise valiant AND push it - if valiant paid them or gave incentive to do so.
From what I understand, forbidden planet accept payment their shop displays ( not all but some). Also push their ghost and retailer signed editions really well.

Great stories, and I do enjoy them, is only good if it sells, it only sells if people know about it. It may take another ŷear? Before some even think that it is ongoing.

Planet death and harbinger wars is a great way to get people involved. Looking forward to see hw valiant promotes this

[BugsySig]

Me - "Why aren't there any Valiant comics on the shelf?"
Comic Shop Guy - "They sell well on reservation, but not on the shelves."

Does anyone else see the ridiculous logic of that quote?

[manga4life]

I think Valiant is selling well in major markets as opposed to remote areas. I know my area does very well with Valiant and a few different shopps have to order more issues from Diamond and I've heard that Midtown Comics in NY are moving quite a bit of Valiant. I took a trip to NY just last month the and saw that the Midtown Comics main location had Valiant stuff well promoted for the new issues and was actually swiss cheese for older issues which means they are selling. Small rural areas thrive off the standard Marvel and DC fare but the major markets seem to always do well with Indy books and Valiant is no exception.

[Carson]

I am sure I have seen a website, where you submit the design and the shirt is printed to order and shipped - with % going to designer.

I recall a famous rapper? Using it to sell his t- shirts to lower cost and help stop bootleggers. I think anyone can use it, although a long time ago - a friend of mine tried a similar thing. Cannot recall details will try an online search latter.

Summit the design, company prints and ships, valiant gets a cut with not much work.

Zazzle or Cafe Press are legit options to do this. I'm about to start selling 3DJoes posters and maybe some other swag.